Today’s episode features Dr. Kristian Edwards, Professor of Public Health and Founder of BLK+GRN, an all-natural marketplace by all Black artisans.

With a B.A. in the History of Science and History of Medicine from Yale University, a MPH from Yale University School of Medicine, and a Doctorate in Healthcare Management and Leadership from John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Dr. Kristian has dedicated her career to providing knowledge, tools and resources to highlight health disparities in the Black community and help Black men and women lead healthier lives.

After discovering a sobering stat that 75% of the products marketed to Black women are formulated with ingredients that are considered toxic and linked to cancer, hormone disruption and reproductive damage, Dr. Kristian made it her mission to make all natural products easily accessible to the Black community, while also providing an online retail space for Black women artisans. In 2017 she founded, BLK+GRN, a marketplace connects Black people with natural lifestyles to high-quality, toxic-free brands that share in the mission of health, wellness and community cultivation.

Listen as we discuss how Dr. Kristian’s background in public health has influenced her journey to entrepreneurship and creating BLK+GRN, supporting Black-owned brands and the power of Black consumers, and how when leading your career with purpose at the helm, money and success will naturally follow. Dr. Kristian also sheds lights on how yoga, therapy and her loving family aided her road to recovery after a devastating car accident in July of 2019.